L6747C Device description and operation
Doc ID 17127 Rev 1 9/15
4.1 High-impedance (HiZ) management
The driver is capable of managing a high-impedance conditions by keeping all MOSFETs in
an OFF state. This is achieved in two different ways:
●If the EN signal is pulled low, the device keeps all MOSFETs OFF regardless of the
PWM status.
●When EN is asserted, if the PWM signal is externally set within the HiZ window for a
time greater than the hold-off time, the device detects the HiZ condition and turns off all
the MOSFETs. The HiZ window is defined as the PWM voltage range between
VPWM_HIZ_H = 1.6 V and VPWM_HIZ_L = 1.3 V.
The device exits from the HiZ state after any PWM transition. See Figure 4 for details about
HiZ timing.
The implementation of the high-impedance state allows the controller connected to the
driver to manage the high-impedance state of its output, preventing the generation of nega-
tive undershoot on the regulated voltage during the shutdown stage. Also, different power
management states may be managed, such as pre-bias startup.
4.2 Preliminary OV protection
When VCC exceeds its UVLO threshold while the device is in HiZ, the L6747C activates the
preliminary OV protection.
The intent of this protection feature is to protect the load during system startup, especially
from high-side MOSFET failures. In fact, VRM, and more generally PWM, controllers, have a
12 V bus-compatible turn-on threshold and are non-operative if VCC is below the turn-on
thresholds (which is in the range of about 10 V). In cases of high-side MOSFET failure, the
controller does not recognize the overvoltage until VCC = ~10 V (unless other special fea-
tures are implemented). However, in this case the output voltage is already at the same volt-
age (~10 V) and the load (a CPU in most cases) is already burnt.
The L6747C bypasses the PWM controller by latching on the low-side MOSFET if the
PHASE pin voltage exceeds 2 V during the HiZ state. When the PWM input exits from the
HiZ window, the protection is reset and the control of the output voltage is transferred to the
controller connected to the PWM input.
Since the driver has its own UVLO threshold, a simple way to provide protection to the out-
put in all conditions when the device is OFF is to supply the controller through the 5 VSB bus.
5 VSB is always present before any other voltage and, in case of high-side short, the low-
side MOSFET is driven with 5 V. This ensures reliable protection of the load.
Preliminary OV is active after UVLO and while the driver is in an HiZ state, and it is disabled
after the first PWM transition. The controller must manage its output voltage from that
moment on.
4.3 BOOT capacitance design
The bootstrap capacitor value should be selected to obtain a negligible discharge due to the
turning on of the high-side MOSFET. It must provide a stable voltage supply to the high-side
driver during the MOSFET turn-on, and minimize the power dissipated by the embedded
boot diode. Figure 5 illustrates some guidelines on how to select the capacitance value for
the bootstrap according to the desired discharge, and the selected MOSFET.